Sermon and Worship Resources

Antonyms: keep, claim, continue, stick by, self-control, power through, achieve, defend, bear, hope, acquire, quick visit, adopt, continue along, adhere, remain, pursue, support, take up, keep up, reuse, advocate, stay, persevere, cherish, keep going, carry on

Showing 176 to 200 of 4964 results

176. What Will He Find… When He Comes? - Shorter Version

Luke 18:1-8

Sermon

Theodore F. Schneider

... , if you're tired already, you are not going to make it." That's the question Jesus addresses in this parable. Are we going to make it? Do we pray constantly, keeping our eyes fixed on him whose will is our guide and whose faithfulness is the root of our hope? Do we live in the faith, expecting great things to happen in our lives, in our congregation, and even in our world? It was a Scottish preacher who once observed that to say something is hopeless is to slam the door in God's face! Again, it's Lucy who ...

177. Advent 2

Isaiah 11:1-16, Matthew 3:1-12, Romans 14:1--15:13

Bulletin Aid

John R. Brokhoff

... back to the life that comes out of our dead ancestors. Eternal life came out of Jesus' grave. The butterfly comes out of a cocoon. Hope comes out of despair. 2. Mouth (v. 4). The only weapon the Messiah has to eradicate evil is his "mouth." He will smite the earth ... for a warm and loving church. PREACHING POSSIBILITIES Three Lessons: Isaiah 11:1-10; Romans 15:4-13; Matthew 3:1-12 1. Hope For Harmony. Need: A look at both the world and the church is sufficient to realize there is a need for harmony in both ...

178. Advent 3

Romans 14:1--15:13, Matthew 11:1-19, James 5:7-12, Isaiah 11:1-16

Sermon Aid

John R. Brokhoff

179. God’s Chain Reaction

Romans 5:1-5

Sermon

April Yamasaki

... neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39) It is the hope of God's presence. Verse 5 of our text continues, "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us." This is another statement of fact. When we place our faith in Jesus, the Holy Spirit is given to us ...

180. Job Feels under Attack by God

Job 16:1-17:16

Teach the Text

Daniel J. Estes

... of grief from the loss of his family, and he realizes that death cannot give his children back to him. As in 3:17–19 and 7:9 (cf. Ps. 6:5), death is viewed as a shadowy and joyless semi-existence in which the dead are trapped. Job’s hope will not come in his death, for the grave cannot restore to him a sense of family. Theological Insights Job feels that he has been treated so poorly by others that people even spit in his face (17:6), which was the ultimate expression of contempt in his culture, as ...

181. Job’s Reply to Zophar

Job 12:1--14:22

Understanding Series

Gerald H. Wilson

... actually a reference to Sheol, the abode of the dead). As we saw above (on 10:20–22), Sheol is the place of no return, where all go upon death, regardless of their character in this life. Job takes this dreaded end of human life—an end without hope of restoration—and turns it into a place of refuge from the anger of God! The remaining wishes he expresses in this verse are equally impossible. His desire that God could set . . . a time (Heb. khoq, i.e., provide a limit to Job’s stay in Sheol) falters ...

182. In Spite of Evidence to the Contrary

Romans 4:13-25

Sermon

Steven E. Albertin

... can't swim! That is the bad news. But the good news is that standing there next to you is a lifeguard. He has a life jacket for you to put on. He invites you to join him in performing the rescue of your life. He invites you to believe, "hoping against hope," in spite of evidence to the contrary, that together with his help you can do it. Jesus is standing at our side. He has given us his promise. We cannot fail. There is nothing in this universe that can separate us from his love and his commitment to us ...

183. When Will The Pain Go Away?

Matthew 24:1-35

Sermon

George Johnson

... not lose heart. Remember, I am with you always - even to the end of everything. Seek the kingdom first and God's justice - then all these things you need will be added unto you. When you have done it to the least of these you have done it unto me. Hope is nourished and kept alive as we live in the promises of God. Not pious platitudes or empty ritual, but promises - promises from one who has been there before, one who goes with us on our journey, and who will be there to receive us when we arrive at the ...

184. Because

1 Peter 1:1—2:3

Sermon

Richard W. Ferris

... , much less without seeing it? Would you move to a house in a city where you've never been without checking it out and carefully selecting just the right house? Would you marry someone without seeing him or her first? Not on your life! And yet we put our living hope in someone we've never seen. We put our complete trust in a notion that says this man Jesus died on a cross for our sins and that God is able to forgive us everything because of him. We believe that because of him, God is able to overlook our ...

185. Sunday’s Comin’

Hebrews 10:16-25

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... come again and receive you unto myself that where I am, there ye may be also" (John 14:1-3). We look forward to a time when we will be with him in glory, and that makes any sufferings of this present age pale by comparison. Yes, we have hope and confident expectation of life in a new dimension, one in which we will experience "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him" (1 Corinthians 2:9). I need a reminder about that occasionally, and ...

186. Peace and Joy

Romans 5:1-11

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... positively of boasting not in self but in God (Jer. 9:24; 1 Cor. 1:31; 2 Cor. 10:17). To fail to rejoice in God is to rob him of glory (1:21), whereas turning to God in faith renders him rightful glory (4:20) and promises the hope of the glory of God. Christians are able to take courage in present afflictions because they know that the present reality is not the final reality. This passage sets the believer’s sights confidently on the future where God’s glory will overcome sin and pain, where “what is ...

187. Advent 3

Psalm 146:1-10, Isaiah 35:1-10, James 5:7-12, Matthew 11:1-19

Sermon Aid

Marion L. Soards, Thomas B. Dozeman, Kendall McCabe

... God's salvation, even when we find ourselves at a great distance from Zion in situations that appear to be hopeless. Psalm 146:5-10 is a hymn of praise that calls us to trust in God because of God's enduring reliability. Isaiah 35:1-10 - "Hope for the Hopeless" Setting. Theophanies are biblical texts that describe the appearance of God. The oldest theophany traditions in Israel follow a format in which the forces of nature would respond to the approach of God (see Judges 5:4-5). Although Isaiah 35:1-10 is ...

188. Future Glory

Romans 8:18-27

Understanding Series

James R. Edwards

... intends to redeem. The focus of verse 19 concerns not the world as it is, but the world as it will be. The world may be a sorry place, and Paul would not deny it; but rather than lamenting that it is so he directs his gaze in hope toward the future. Believers groan in their creatureliness, but they also know they will not forever remain as they are. Creation is not God‘s final work. They learn to take God more seriously than their sufferings. Redemption is God’s final work, when believers will no longer ...

189. The Covenant Of Amazing Grace

Genesis 9:1-17

Sermon

Durwood L. Buchheim

... which is known by its Greek name, Genesis, which means beginning or coming into being. One of the great emphases of this book of beginnings is the promise of God. The conclusion to the powerful story of Noah and the flood contains such a promise. This promise of hope comes at a hopeless time. In the first six chapters of Genesis we see the progress of sin, like a fast growing cancer moving into and corrupting all society. The fall of Adam and Eve set in motion a chain reaction of evil and the whole universe ...

190. Grace in the Midst of Hopelessness

Romans 8:18-27

Sermon

Glenn McDonald

... on a calmness and courage that lifted her through the last difficult hours of her life. Once again she grasped that she belonged to God, and that no fire is able to destroy what really matters. If we belong to God, then God's gift to us is a living hope. Through the Spirit we grasp whose we are. No frailties in the present can keep us from the Lord, and no fears about the future can prevent God from blessing us. Most importantly, we discover that whatever power we have to never, never, never give up is ours ...

191. What It Takes to Stay Christian

1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

Sermon

Raymond Gibson

... thing I do know about her for certain. She understands clearly what it takes to stay Christian in these days. It takes "the work of faith," or to use her word, evangelizing. It requires "the labor of love," or discipling; both must be carried out in "steadfastness of hope" in helping to fulfill the Great Commission. That’s what it takes to stay Christian in Florida today, even as it did in Thessalonica in St. Paul’s day. That’s also what it takes in our community in our day. So! Let us be about it!

192. Beyond Despair

Psalm 43:1-5, Psalm 42:1-11

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... energy to create that political will." Wallis goes on to say that this is a challenge the new graduates will have to face. Do not lose hope. Take the bull by the horns "connecting your best talents and skills to your best and deepest values, making sure your mind is in sync ... is well with my soul."(6) "Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me?" Move beyond despair. "Put your hope in God..." Amen! 1. Kyle D. Pruett, M.D., Fatherneed (New York: The Free Press, 2000), p. 6 2. Matthew 26:39 ...

193. A Faith That Transforms, Not Just Adorns

Hebrews 11:1-40

Sermon

Leonard Sweet

... desires. But faith has roots that hold it steady and feed it fully, no matter what the weather. Faith has wings that keep it soaring, send it forward, and give it freedom, no matter how dismal the present surroundings. Faith gives hope a reason to be. Faith is “the REALITY of things hoped for, the PROOF of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Faith does not “float” on the hot air of half-baked human assertions. Christian faith is re-barred and reinforced by the lives of all those faithful men and women ...

194. April Sky

John 20:1-9

Sermon

Frank Lyman

... , if we keep the faith, Easter can mean more to us than chocolate bunnies, ham dinners and adding Turf-Builder to the lawn. IT CAN MEAN NEW LIFE. But, first, we need to place ourselves in the story and recall our own moments when we have thought, "I had hoped, but I hope no more." When Mary came to the tomb she was puzzled to find Jesus' body missing. She ran to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one Jesus loved, and said, "They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put ...

195. Invest In The Future

Jeremiah 32:1-44

Sermon

Thomas G. Rogers

... still me. God is still God. It's going to be okay somehow." Perhaps in her blindness Pamela was able to see something in her candle that eluded Cynthia when she held up her lit candle before the group. Cynthia saw the flame of her candle as a symbol of hope. The flame was the symbol of light in darkness -- God helping us out of bad situations. This can be a powerful symbol for people who have passed through darkness on the way to better times. But it did not speak to the man in the back row. And there may ...

196. Job Presents Evidence against the Retribution Principle

Job 12:1--14:22

Teach the Text

Daniel J. Estes

... in 10:21 and 16:22, the grave is a place of no return. Job does not have the doctrine of resurrection to appeal to, for he is limited in his understanding to what God has revealed at this time in history. Because of his limited knowledge, his only hope is for God to intervene for him before he dies (cf. Ps. 27:13). After that, it will be too late. 14:13 If only you would hide me in the grave. This hypothetical and imaginative desire expressed by Job contrasts with his revulsion of the grave elsewhere in ...

197. Sunday's Coming

Mark 11:1-11

Sermon

David E. Leininger

... on a hill outside Jerusalem called Calvary. What in the world happened? Perhaps the answer is as simple as a loss of hope. It might have taken different forms for different people. For example, there were those in the crowd known as the Zealots whose ... , `SUNDAY'S COMIN'!"(7) That is the good news, the Gospel, the word the world is waiting to hear. That is the church's message of hope. When life begins to get you down, our word is SUNDAY'S COMIN'. When the love you had counted on is gone and you feel that ...

198. The Living Advent Wreath (The Manger: White Candle of Peace)

Luke 2:1-7

Drama

Frank Ramirez

... five woes. My sack is as empty as ever, but not my heart. Guide: What have you learned, Pilgrim, in Far Country? Pilgrim: The world is not dying. It lives. I can see the tree has grown even as we have met! Even when it is sleeping, there is hope for the spring! As long as we have faith. Faith: (sings) Faith is the hub at the heart of the flower While in the autumn she yearns Sweetly for spring and her nurturing shower. Faith I am. Snow abounds. Burn. Sunshine will always return. Pilgrim: The world is not ...

199. Unnoticed at Your Own Party

Isaiah 35:1-10, Matthew 11:2-11, James 5:7-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... struggling, theologically challenged group of God’s people.” He thought maybe the sign was a joke! Maybe it was there to make you smile! Maybe it doesn’t really exist at all! All these thoughts filled his head as he thought about the name--the Little Hope church. And so, one beautiful Sunday afternoon, Michael Dent and his wife and mother-in-law decided to make a journey to see if they could find the church advertised on the sign. There it was just as he remembered it. So they turned in the direction ...

200. Join in the Singing

Isaiah 35:1-10

Sermon

King Duncan

... lands. There is a bridge in Sunderland, England, called Wearmouth Bridge, and it has been the site of several suicides. These tragic events led a young woman named Paige Hunter to begin writing notes of encouragement and sticking them on the bridge, to give hope to those who might think of ending their life there. The notes say things like, “Even though things are difficult, your life matters; you’re a shining light in a dark world, so just hold on.” Other citizens of Sunderland have been so inspired ...

Showing results